Building Penang’s Future Technical Talent : 262 students

It was indeed an incredible journey of sorts for 262 students who crossed the finishing line for the Technical Skill Learning (TSL) programme which was piloted by PENANG STEM over 2 years from 2025 to 2026 and turned up for the Certification Ceremony conducted at the Penang Skills Development Centre (PSDC) on Sep 26.

TSL was a pilot programme to offer basic skills learning in Mechatronic or Automation offered to upper secondary students over 2 years (in Forms 4 and 5) from selected schools in Penang.

This programme was developed by PENANG STEM in partnership with the Jabatan Pembangunan Kemahiran (JPK) and Jabatan Pendidikan Negeri (JPN) Pulau Pinang to help alleviate the critical shortage of technical talents, particular in Mechatronics, faced by Industry in Penang in recent years.

With the participation of several established technical training institutions, a framework was agreed upon after a 2-day brainstorming session conducted in Oct 2023. It was also agreed upon that, instead of reinventing the wheel, programme module for students would be procured from some of the relevant Work Activities under the Competency Units of the official Sijil Kemahiran Malaysia (SKM) conducted under the governance of JPK.

With this, students who complete the 2-year programme with minimum 80% attendance over the 52 sessions conducted, subject also to their passing the annual assessments, will qualify to receive the Sijil Penyata Pencapaian (or partial certification) from JPK which will allow them to proceed on (with credit transfers on the Work Activities completed) to complete the SKM Level 2 certification post-secondary and also proceed on to obtain their Diploma Kemahiran Malaysia (DKM) which are officially-recognised skill learning qualifications in Malaysia.

Out of the 262 students who completed the programme, 226 will qualify for the partial certification once they pass the final assessment test to be conducted soon.

The school-leavers will have 2 options if they wish to pursue the technical qualification, i.e. to either join Industry on Work-Study (with paid income) under the national Akademi Dalam Industri (ADI) programme or pursue full-time technical studies with accredited training institutions under JPK’s Sistem Latihan Program Bertauliah (SLaPB).

Participating companies who sponsored the TSL programme in the selected schools will have first right of refusal to engage their students as trainees/apprentices after their SPM and provide guidance and support their quest for their future diploma qualifications under ADI. Many of the students have already been snapped up by potential employers during the Engagement Session with Industry which was conducted immediately after the certification ceremony at PSDC.

During the ceremony officiated by the Deputy Minister of Investment, Trade and Industry (MITI), YB Sim Tze Tzin commended the students on their outstanding achievement and encouraged them to reach for the sky and continue on to pursue not only their diploma qualifications but to possibly even higher qualifications to help fulfil the federal government’s mission to produce another 60,000 engineers as outlined under the National Semiconductor Strategy and also in alignment with the New Industrial Master Plan.

During the ceremony, 25 Most Outstanding Students were officially recognised and presented with special awards, prizes and trophies under sponsorship by the Knights of Rizal Malaysia Chapter (led by their President/Governor, Sir Dr Chiam Tzeh Yew) which is an international civic, patriotic and cultural organisation dedicated to studying, disseminating and practising the teachings and ideals of Dr Jose Rizal, the national hero of the Philippines.

He commended Penang STEM on initiating the TSL programme in partnership with JPK and JPN and the participating institutions, namely Penang Skills Development Centre (PSDC), Japan Malaysia Technical Institute (JMTI) and Fourier TVET Centre.

YB Sim also pledged MITI’s support for the TSL programme and he will suggest to Malaysia Productivity Corporation (federal agency under MITI tasked with the role to promote ADI to Industry players) to explore closer collaboration with Penang STEM to formalise and take TSL to the next level

He further added that, since the TSL will be officially endorsed as a critical TVET talent pipeline development programme and funding under the 13^th Malaysia Plan (RMK13) for 2026 – 30, more schools and students can participate and the programme can contribute greatly in the NSS and NIMP objectives to groom future engineers and skilled workforce.

In his address, PENANG STEM CEO, Dato’ Richard Chung thanked all programme partners and sponsors for their strong support in helping to make TSL a reality. He added that, although TSL will be federally-funded under RMK13 from next year, Industry players (MNCs, LLCs and SMEs) can still play a role to be Corporate Coaches/Mentors to guide students under the TSL-ADI phase.

During the ceremony, a special mention and award was also given to Dato’ Dr Bugs Tan, who played a critical role in helping to initiate the TSL programme.

Photos Enclosed:

Strategic partners behind the Technical Skill Learning (TSL) Programme, working together to strengthen Penang’s technical talent pipeline and create pathways from school to industry

Recognising the dedication and commitment of our teachers in supporting students throughout the TSL Programme and achieving an overall attendance rate of at least 80%.

Celebrating 25 students who achieved 100% attendance throughout the TSL Programme, with cash prizes generously sponsored by the Knights of Rizal Malaysia Chapter.

Dr. N. Rajah shared his personal journey and inspiring experience in pursuing a technical career pathway, motivating students to explore opportunities in the technical and engineering fields.

Puan Mahfuzah binti Abdul Jalil, Pegawai Pembangunan Kemahiran, JPK Wilayah Utara, sharing about technical pathways at TVET institutions and providing students with an introduction to the UP_TVET application.